1. Field
The present invention is directed to an apparatus for housing a button-type battery, and more particularly to an apparatus that facilitates compact housing and easy changing of the battery.
2. Description of Related Art
Miniature electronic equipment is often portable in nature and, as such, requires a portable source of power such as a button-type battery. A battery may be conveniently attached to the housing of miniature electronic equipment and make electrical contact by way of a conventional connector. To make battery changing easier, battery housing and locking mechanisms have been devised to enable the user to disconnect a spent battery and replace it with a freshly charged battery. It has been proven desirable to securely affix the detachable battery to the miniature electronic equipment by way of some sort of housing and locking mechanism. As the equipment becomes smaller, however, space within the miniature electronic equipment cannot be afforded for extensive locking mechanisms separately. Thus, it would be advantageous for housing and locking mechanisms to be integrated together within the miniature electronic equipment.
Traditional button battery housings are of a drawer-like cartridge structure in nature, which has the disadvantage of increased thickness for miniature electronic equipment. The button battery dwells in the cartridge in the form of a drawer, which is thick. When changing the battery, a user pulls the drawer cartridge out of or pushes the drawer cartridge in to the equipment and then takes out the battery from the cartridge. Another disadvantage is there exist separate parts from the equipment—like the drawer cartridge—which can be easily lost when a user changes the battery.